TED talk #8

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, begins by telling us a story about what she would write about as a child. She speaks less in a lecture style but coming off more like shes only there to tell a story. She would write stories that were similar to the foreign stories she would read which contained white skinned children with blue eyes, nothing like her. Until she found African stories is when she realized that people like her could be in stories. If we hear or read stories about a part of the world we tend to perceive that part of the world as the stories describe those places. Those stories we receive make us feel certain emotions, emotions like pity, towards the people that live in those places. The consequence of the single story about a person, place, or issue. A single story also robs people of dignity and emphasizes how different people are. By engaging with all the stories of a person, place, or issue, the trap of a single story can be avoided. I agree that the single story makes the differences in people stand out and the single story is an incomplete description. People around the whole need to learn to see past the single story, or first impression, or what they hear about someone or something keeping an open mind. To not pass judgement to people in the professional world or in school; either way to not put one above another based on a single story.

TED talk #7

José Antonio Abreu, the founder of Venezuela’s El Sistema, the country’s high touted national music education program, gave a talk and TED prize acceptance speech in one. Abreu spoke of how El Sistema is at its heart a program of social rescue for lower income children and their families. The TED talk was not a conventional TED lecture, first it was a video, that was the lecture spoken in Spanish, with video of the musicians in background to enhance his talk. Being a musician this video spoke to me in that I am very lucky to have had the opportunities to learn to play that I do. Many people around the world are not as fortunate as I, Jose says in his talk that hardest part of poverty is not the lack of bread or of housing its the lack of being someone, the identity of being no one and music gives this kids an identity. In his prize acceptance speech his "TED wish" is that programs like El Sistema would grow in other countries. Educators should focus on giving kids a greater chance at music, or just arts in general, or whatever gives them the feelings of accomplishment. I think that many times programs to promote artistic or outstanding ability are lost in many schools. Giving kids, around the world the opportunity to learn the power of music could enhance their quality of life.

TED talk #6 "Once Upon a School"

In Dave Eggers TED talk "Once Upon a School", he tells us about his development of unconventional study centers. Dave isn't a perfect speaker, you can tell that he is nervous in his manners, wringing his hands stuttering; it does not take away from his performance, it enhanced it in a way. He was telling a story, it was personal and awkwardly charming. When he speaks he uses pictures of the Superhero and Pirate Supply Store tutoring centers. As a teacher, in a sense, I teach small children how to swim I truly believe in his belief of one on one tutoring or teaching. Children need one on one attention, giving a private lessons I see children grow substantially. The same goes for teachers, if informal, fun, tutoring centers like the ones developed by Dave, were more readily available more kids would want to get help. Just like in the world if things are more readily avalible, that aren't intimitating people are more likely to be open to them.

TED talk #5

Sir Ken Robinson at a TED Conference makes an argument that creativity is as important as education and that it should be treated with the same status of importance as education. He goes on to give a few examples of how kids are not afraid of taking chances even if they are wrong. He says "if you're not prepared to be wrong, you'll never be able to come up with anything original." By the time kids become adults, they lose that capacity. This is something that's bred in the corporate world and now taking form in educational systems. Robinson uses a quote from Picasso who once said "All children are born artists. The problem is to remain an artist as we grow up" which is to say kids do not grow into creativity, but grow out of it, or rather educated out of it. He speaks with great conviction and doesn't stutter or pause like many I've watched; he uses humor to enhance his lecture. It made me wonder about many things.Perhaps it’s become in some ways I feel I became a victim of this (and most of us probably are). He states that if you are afraid of being wrong you will never come up with something original. He tells us that we have been told, or directed away from things that we liked because you'll never get a job in that; you can't be a musician, an artist, a dancer. Personally, this applies to me because I have a passion for music, and I use to aspire to be a musician, go to Julliard, deal with my student loans and small salary with benign happiness. As my school career has gone on I have been directed towards science and math, be a lawyer, or an engineer, a doctor, a mathematician; you want to be a writer? A musician? An actor? Do you desire a life of poverty and hardship, small budgets, and no health insurance? You're mad. Though I say maybe I'll be a pediatrician, I don't find real passion in that. Sir Ken Robinson though showed me that maybe, I can do that instead, even if I am "wrong". As for education we should stop treating the creative as a crazy alternative to the steady job. Allow kids to be "wrong" sometimes without the persecution of their peers. Though required courses make us be well rounded and explore new possibilities, they can be limiting, taking credits of things we actually enjoy could make students like school again. Allow people do be creative with the chance to be wrong, and creativity can burst all over the world.

TED talk #5

In Dan Dennett's TED talk "sweet, sexy, cute, funny" he explores exactly that what makes something sweet to taste, sexy or cute to look at, or funny. The theory stems from Darwinism, things are sweet because they are sweet, or brains have been trained to identify sugar, that quick energy so we identify sweet. We find babies cute because we need to love them and want to care for them, and so on. Dan presents quickly and factually, he doesn't beat around the bush, he gives you the facts with a quick and humorous delivery. He uses pictures to enhance what he is speaking of. Though this wasn't a TED talk that affects our daily lives is told us something important that does affect us today, we trained our brain to find the opposite sex sexy, food that at the time, was sugary good fruit, find our babies cute so we will love them and find situations funny to take away from the uniformity of day to day life, can't we train our brains to adapt to what the modern man needs. Educators retraining the mind to find solutions or adapt to new languages.

50 word Saga

Boy, girl. Damsel in distress, knight in shining armor, saved her from her razor blades. Love blooms, picture white picket fences, idealist life. He held her like a bird with broken wings . Shadow followed them, he would keep the world from hurting but he can't save her form herself.

TED talk #2: The Power of Vunerability

In Brene Brown's TED talk, The Power of Vulnerability she talks of how people try to evolve themselves to the point of no longer being vulnerable but to be able to love you cannot have yourself be perfectly invincible, to need to be able to feel. She explores the "dirty" concepts surrounding vulnerability and shame and how they act as obstacles in one's pursuit of true happiness. Her presentation style is more of a lecture style, she uses images to enhance her speaking. She speaks like a professor or a teacher, shes not exactly telling a story or a path but trying to give reflection. She shows that people live on the principal that people do not talk about shame because, the more you talk about it the more you have. When we do not show about vulnerability our connections with people are not authentic. This video helped me discover that despite naturally wanting to numb my emotions, hide things I am ashamed of, and fear what others might think if they knew my secrets, it is worth it to be authentic and vulnerable. By living with my whole heart, I can experience true happiness and enjoy real connections with others. In means of the world I believe people have become very apathetic and jaded towards society, or they try to be. Many people do not want to seem weak or vulnerable, to live in a world as fast paced and harsh on the weak as it is you have to go around pretending that emotions do not affect you. If people were capable again to show their vulnerabilities it would create a better world to be apart of.

TED talk #3 : Tales of Creativity and Play

Tim Brown is head of a design firm called IDEO. In his talk he explores how having a sense of creativity and play in the work place can be essential, going back to childhood like exploration of ideas. Tim speaks in a lecture style but is very interactive with his audience. First he has everyone one in the audience draw, in thirty seconds their neighbor. At the end of thirty seconds there is much laughter and "sorry", he relates to if a similar experience was done with children that they would be unapologetic, for they would not know as adults grow up to do is be embarrassed. Children are encouraged to explore and create without judgment but adults do not feel that way, something that I will take away is creativity is produced in a playful environment. To steal some of Tim's examples places of creativity and design like Pixar or Google are known for their fun and almost childish places of work. In terms of education he talks of how in every preschool class you will find means of creativity; scissors, colored pencils, paper, play dough, yet by the time we reach high school such supplies are nowhere to be found. Allowing adults and teens to "play" would greatly enhance creativity, the feeling of unapologetic invention. I, myself feel like I have to be in a creative inducing environment to create, I find it very difficult to write in class, judgment from my peers and teachers helps restrain me; I am extremely more comfortable in my room where I can listen to music and feel free of judgment. The world would be much freer and creative if we could allow people to be creative and play in work environments, no to distract from the work but to enhance it. Allow all ideas to flow without constantly stopping yourself to reevaluated and criticize .

TED talk 1: If I should have a daughter.

In Sarah Kay's TED talk, If I should have a daughter, she first speaks a poem of If I should a daughter, and then tells her journey of spoken word poetry. She speaks of the art of communication, her communication is spoken poems; she challenges the listener to find common ground, to find their story. To take away one thing of the talk would be difficult; she speaks many truths that are understandable. What I will take away from this to find the way to tell your story, whatever it may be. Sarah's effective speaking technique was to be relatable; to speak to the listener where they could understand but not down to them. She does not act like she knows worlds more than the listener like I have seen speakers do, but she makes herself human like us. She speaks of similar experiences and is able to laugh at herself while still telling her powerful message. Her presentation style was first with a spoken poem then more of a lecture style, she tells about her poetry experiences, then again she performs a poem. She does not use many images of video to enhance her performance for she does not need it . She is humorous in her delivery and energetic. The importance of the talk has many points, for many different people and situations. I, myself find the importance in finding a away to express yourself, last year I went through a dark patch, my mother tried to find me vices to express myself since I have a difficult time doing it in words, so along with piano I took guitar. Like for many students or teenagers it was important to find a way to tell my story, which is why it is important for education. Many students probably feel disconnected, and maybe the vices that teachers have given them do not suffice. The world is full of stories and telling them is what brings us closer and makes us human.

Giving up Freedom (PLN #4)

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither neither liberty nor safety." --Benjamin Franklin 1759 Benjamin Franklin stated that those who are willing enough to give up their freedoms, which he said in a time when America was trying to win its freedom; to find safety do not deserve the freedoms they gave up so willingly nor the safety they were trying to accomplish. I believe that what Ben Franklin stated was exactly right. I was taught to never give up my faith like the early Christians who refused to renounce their God in return to not be persecuted. In Benjamin Franklin's time they were fighting for their freedom against the British; for people to simply to side with the British to protect themselves shows that they don't deserve what they were fighting for, nor the protection they received for being cowards. It may seem harsh but if people choose to lay down and give up their weapon they may not deserve to be saved from what they were hiding from. To save ourselves from the enemy we are really giving in to their demands.